This invention relates to providing electrical connections, more particularly to a connector for electrically joining a plurality of wires to form a detachable connection.
Connectors for joining a plurality of wires are commercially available. Many such connectors have been designed and are in use at the present time. However, the known connectors, particularly the high density wire connectors, have been unsatisfactory for certain applications. In most connectors, wires must be joined to terminals on plugs and receptacles that are closely spaced and very small. Joining by the usual methods i.e. crimping or soldering becomes very time consuming, tedius, and difficult. Further, in order to make a dependable electrical connection, the surfaces to make electrical contact should be subjected to a wiping action to remove any scale and/or oxide on the surfaces. When the connection contains many wires and contacts, this becomes very important and more difficult to achieve. Further, the contact surfaces should also be spring-biased to insure continued contact. When the number of contacts in the connectors becomes large, the force necessary to make the connection becomes substantial. These factors make the design of a connector, particularly high density miniaturized connectors, a complex task. In applications where dependability is of prime importance, such as computer applications, the need for an improved connector is great.